Career Strategist & Storyteller Helping You Get Career Happy

Why “I Did It and You Can Too!” Success Step Articles Don’t Work For You

Not long ago LinkedIn Publisher announced they had more than one million users publishing long form content on LinkedIn. One of the coolest things about publishing on LinkedIn Publisher was that an author could get featured in a specific venue under Pulse.

I used to get featured quite a bit and was excited every time I saw the little tag at the bottom of my article, “Featured on XYZ”. Yay me.

But then something happened; Publisher changed and so did being featured on Pulse. Since the change, I have not been featured once. Not one single time. Boo me.

I felt like I got kicked out of the cool kids table. I was not the only one. Discussion boards lit up with many comments and reactions all boiling down to one thing: “What happened?” There were a lot of us kicked out of the cool kids table.

What happened was about the time of the one million user announcement, LinkedIn Publisher changed. There was never really a secret formula before, but whatever it was had new ingredients now. I did not know how I was featured before, but now that it was gone, I wanted to figure it out the new formula.

So I did what any overly-analytical, slightly topic obsessive, dog with a bone kind of person would do – I researched. What was I doing wrong and where could I get the expert advice that I needed, the formula, the plan, the actionable steps for me to take in order to rejoin the cool kids table?

I found plenty of articles with titles that just screamed, “I have the answer!’ So I read them, it felt like I read them all. I absorbed, took notes, followed instructions and guess what happened?

Nothing.

I was still not allowed at the cool kids table.

I wrote catchy headlines, gave useful and relevant information, provided action steps, sought disharmony with the norm – all the tricks and tools that were almost guaranteed to get me back at that table, because every author said it worked for them.

That is the thing about most how to, this is the best way articles – they are forums of “this is how I broke that unbreakable barrier and you can too!”

But it does not quite work out that way. It may have worked for them, but why does it not work for you?

Because almost every single one of them does not list the key missing ingredient.

Call it timing, perseverance, strategy, karma, a fluke or call it what it really is – luck.

Just plain old luck.

Every bit of success that I have ever read, listened to or experienced has all included that one little element – luck.

This is not to say that you should not try to follow the great advice in those articles. By all means, read as much as you can, experiment, try new things and keep reaching for results. Set goals, research markets, create processes, measure results.

While you are doing those things just keep this one thing in mind – when the luck is right – you will have your results.

Luck is not something you can plan for or force. However, all the planning that you do and all the work you put into it before the luck comes through will make it an easy transition into success. You will be ready, you will be more wise, more prepared and more grateful that your time has come.

Then you, too, can write a “this is how I broke through the unbreakable barrier, and you can too!” article.

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I help people identify and set a path to achieve their career goals by using the V Formula:

Your Value + Your Voice = Visibility

Visibility is the leverage to move in, move up or move on in your career; expand your book of business or territory, grow your company and strengthen your team.

–Lisa

Lisa K. McDonald, Owner and Principal of Career Polish, Inc. is a favorite speaker and seminar facilitator at companies, professional organizations and colleges speaking to leadership, sales, teams, transitioning/downsized employees and networking groups about career mobility, personal branding, networking, creating executive presence and achieving career movement success. To find out more, visit Career Polish, Inc.

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